Minister Nokuzola Sisisi Tolashe: Media briefing on South Africa’s State of Readiness to host Africa Children’s Summit

Programme Director; Ms Lumka Olifant 
Director-General of Social Development, Mr Peter Netshipale and Senior Managers;
Chief Executive Officer of Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund; Dr Linda Ncube-Nkomo;
Deputy Director-General for Welfare Services, Ms Sizakele Magangoe;
Senior Managers from the Department of Social Development 
Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund here present;  
Ladies and Gentlemen of the media joining us here and online

A very good morning to you all and thank you for joining us at this media briefing on the state of readiness for the upcoming 2nd Biennial Africa Children’s Summit, which is scheduled for 4-7 April in Johannesburg, Gauteng Province.

The Government of the Republic of South Africa, through the Department of Social Development takes great pride in co-hosting this landmark gathering in collaboration with the Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund (Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund ). Let me take this opportunity to express my gratitude to the CEO, the board and management of the Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund for successfully bringing the 2nd Biennial Africa Children’s Summit to South Africa as part of a series of activities for our Presidency of the Group of 20 (G20), which will culminate in the G20 Leaders’ Summit in November this year.

As you are aware, that we are presiding over G20 as South Africa for the first time . As such we seeks to use its G20 Presidency to bring the developmental priorities of the African Continent and the Global South .As social sector cluster  we thought there is no better way to do this and to honour Madiba’s life and legacy than to amplify the collective voice of Africa’s children under the theme: “Seen, Heard and Engaged in Education”

On an occasion such as this, the words of the first President of the democratic South Africa, President Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela, at the launch of the Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund, profoundly resonates  with us today as we prepare to host the Africa Children’s Summit. On that occasion President Mandela said [and I quote]: There can be no keener revelation of a society's soul than the way in which it treats its children [close quote].

It is worth mentioning that it was during the Presidency of uTata Nelson Mandela that the South African government ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (commonly known as the CRC), the first legally binding international convention to confirm the human rights of all children across the globe.  The CRC is a human rights convention that sets out the civil, political, economic, social, health and cultural rights of children. It was the first international convention that the newly-elected democratic government ratified on the 16th June 1996.

Five years later on 7 January 2000, South Africa ratified the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACRWC), a broad regional instrument that sets out rights for children in Africa, commonly known as the African Children’s Charter. Since ratifying both the CRC and the African Children’s Charter, and guided by our Constitution especially Section 28 of the Bill of Rights, South Africa has focused on realising children’s rights and fulfilling our obligations.

Central to both the CRC and the African Children’s Charter is the principle that governments must always act in the best interests of the child and that every child has basic fundamental right to:

• life, survival and development;
• protection from violence, abuse or neglect;
• an education that enables children to fulfil their potential;
• be raised by, or have a relationship with, both parents even if they are separated;
• express their opinions and be listened to;
• have their privacy protected, and
• their lives are not subject to excessive interference.

The main objectives of the Summit are to promote child-centred dialogue and advocacy; empower children as agents of change; ensure inclusive and equitable participation; provide evidence-based policy recommendations; strengthen collaboration across sectors and regions on the continent; review and advance progress; and raise awareness and mobilise for national and regional action.

Child participation is a fundamental right of children through which their other rights can be realised.  The obligations on society through the state to protect, respect and promote the right of children to participate in decisions that affect them are espoused by both the CRC and the African Children’s Charter. The child-led Summit, which aims to amplify the voices of children in policymaking and decision-making processes across the continent, is also aligned to the AU Agenda 2040, and the recent Bogotá 2024 Global Commitment to Ending Violence Against Children.

Following on the inaugural Summit held in Nairobi, Kenya in 2023, the 2nd Biennial Africa Child Summit in South Africa is a landmark gathering aimed at championing child participation and shaping the future trajectory of the African continent with inputs from her children. The child-led Summit emphasises the importance of children’s agency under the saying: “NOTHING ABOUT US WITHOUT US”.

The Summit creates a platform to agitate for accelerated action needed to realise the full enjoyment of the human rights and freedoms of all children on the African continent. Because it is led by children themselves, it gives them a collective voice to share their views, and hold African leaders and governments to account on key issues affecting them. These include democracy, emerging technologies and climate change, promoting inclusive education for all children, role of artificial intelligence in education, addressing school violence, gender-based violence and violence against children, amongst others.

The child-friendly programme will feature a dynamic and inclusive structure, that is designed to maximise engagement, encourage meaningful participation, and foster intergenerational dialogue. The structure includes a blend of plenaries, panels, workshops, exhibitions, and cultural events, with hybrid components to enhance accessibility.

With just one day remaining before the highly anticipated 2nd Biennial Africa Children’s Summit, it is all systems go and we are pleased to inform you that of the 54 states in Africa, 17 have confirmed participation. The Summit will bring together 1300 children from 10-17 years from all five African regions, with around 300 children expected to attend in-person at St John’s College, Parktown-Johannesburg and about 1000 children are expected to participate virtually.

Playing is central to learning for children. For this reason, the programme will feature a dynamic and inclusive structure that is designed to maximise engagement, encourage meaningful participation, and foster intergenerational dialogue.

We have taken great care to ensure the inclusion of about 50 children with disabilities in the Summit. As you are aware, children with disabilities are among the most vulnerable people on the continent. Recent reports point to the harsh realities of their daily lives and that children with disabilities are twice as likely to be victims of sexual abuse as their non-disabled peers. Both the CRC and the African Children’s Charter put an obligation on the African State to promote the development of all children, where possible prevent disabilities, and realise the rights of children with disabilities.

The Local Organising Committee, convened by Social Development and Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund , and comprising of all key government departments, including law enforcement agencies has been meeting on a weekly basis to take stock of all aspects of the Summit. In this regard, the State Security Agency and South African Police Service will be onsite to ensure that all child delegates are and feel safe during the Summit.

On a related matter, the State Security Agency has conducted a thorough security vetting, including background checks of eighty-two (82) caregivers who will be accompanying child delegates at the Summit.  This is crucial to ensure the safety and well-being of those under their care and all children at the Summit. We are intentional about the safety of our children and we do not want to leave anything to chance.

We are pleased that various local, regional and international media has shown keen interest to amplify African children’s voices at the upcoming event, with about forty (40) media representatives accredited to cover the Summit thus far. Still on media-related issues, please note that the Department of Social Development’s Over-The-Top platform known as DSDTV will be the primary broadcast platform for the upcoming Africa Children’s Summit. The platform will provide translation services for the 8 designated languages. The media liaison team will provide you with a list of countries and the eight (8) African official languages for the Summit.  

Ladies and Gentlemen of the media, the upcoming Africa Children’s Summit and the topical issues to be discussed could not be more timely. From shocking revelations currently emerging in the Joshlin Smith’s case to the mind-numbing brutal rape of a 7-year old Cwecwe ,alleged at Bergview College in the Eastern Cape, child protection is higher than ever on the public agenda and in the public conscience. We join the nation in calling for “JUSTICE FOR CWECWE” and emphasizing that JUSTICE DELAYED IS JUSTICE DENIED. 

We acknowledge all strides  made by the South Africans on the matter  and register the progress report on the interventions by the Eastern Cape Department of Social Development in this matter. The department has been working with the family since 29 October 2024. All the necessary psycho-social support services were rendered to both the child and her family. Social workers including a forensic social worker are working closely with the South African Police Service to bring the culprit to book and all relevant involved stakeholders. .

We therefore appeal to the Minister of Police to follow up on his commitment and spare no effort to speedily ensure that the perpetrator is brought to book to face the full might of the law. Not only on this case, but all other gender-based violence matters. CWECWE AND MANY OTHER SURVIVORS OF GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE CANNOT WAIT FOR JUSTICE!

The sad reality we need to confront head-on, as shown year in and year out by the quarterly crime statistics, is that more and more children are likely to be abused at home and in the hands of someone they know—those who have a duty to care and protect them. And that is why we welcomed the recent announcement by the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development to publicise the list of convicted gender-based violence perpetrators and names of sexual offenders contained in the National Register for Sex Offenders.

And that is why on our part, we intend to scale up prevention and early intervention such as RISIHA, which seeks to support community-based efforts to develop, enhance and coordinate initiatives and activities to prevent child abuse, neglect and exploitation. The focus is on strengthening families and communities as the first line of response in care and prevention.

And key to these interventions is the need to promote child participation by listening, hearing and engaging the voices of our children, as per the recommendations of both the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child and the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child during the presentation of South Africa’s periodic report.

One way in which we do this is through the annual Nelson Mandela Children’s Parliament, a collaborative effort between the Department of Social Development, Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund, UNICEF, Save the Children SA, the National Assembly and Provincial Legislatures.

As I conclude, I want to express my appreciation to the Local Organising Committee for working around the clock to ensure that our government in partnership with the Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund  is more than ready to host this landmark gathering of Africa’s children on  South African soil. We hope that the 2nd Biennial Africa Children’s Summit will complement ongoing national and regional efforts to leverage the momentum of the Nairobi Summit and accelerate the implementation of the ‘’Africa We Want’’ and the 2030 Agenda to ensure that we leave no child behind.

We look forward to hosting a successful Africa Children’s Summit and look forward to seeing you members of the media, as we continue in our collective efforts to build a better Africa and a better world fit for all children.

I thank you all for your attention. 

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